I loved fall before it was a pumpkin spice everything “basic” thing to say. Football, foliage, fleecy things and my birthday have always made October my favorite month.

Sidebar: WHO decided that the word ‘basic’ was suddenly going to be an insult? It was a really useful word in the English language, and you done gone ruined something so simple and turned it into some sort of social commentary about a demographic you don’t like. Couldn’t you go take some underused word like “fluxionary” instead? Who’s going to miss that one from their vocabulary? Not I. I had to google “odd underused words” just to come up with it. See? Look at that girl in her Ugg boots with the Frappuccino in hand. She’s so fluxionary. It works.

ANYWAY – there are some recipes you just can’t make in the summer. Lasagna, soups, stews, mac & cheese – there are certain comfort foods that just don’t feel right to cook or eat in July. Once the thermometer drops below 60 and you can wear long sleeves without breaking a sweat, I say they’re fair game. I’m kind of chilly. Time to layer on the lululemon and bust out the crock pot!

This weekend, I was inspired to put my own spin on a recipe from the Paleo Kitchen by PaleOMG‘s Juli Bauer and Civilized Caveman‘s George Bryant. Using a bag of onions instead of crying over cutting them? Genius. There were a few ingredients and quantities of theirs that I didn’t agree with, so I took them out and made some changes. There were a few ingredients I like that they didn’t use, so I stuck them in.

What changes did I make? Not telling. GO BUY THEIR BOOK. It’s beautiful and full of delicious stuff. These two smarties deserve the $$$.

Cabernet Beef Stew

• 1.5lbs Stew Beef
• 6 Slices Uncured Nitrate-Free Bacon
• 1 bag frozen Pearl Onions
• 4 Carrots, peeled & cut into chunks
• 3 Parsnips, peeled & cut into chunks
• 2 tsp Minced Garlic
• 8 oz Red Wine
• 1 Can (14oz) Plain Diced Tomatoes
• 1 Small can (8oz) Plain Tomato Sauce
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Pepper
• 1 tsp Flavor God Garlic Lovers Seasoning

1) In a skillet, cook the bacon ahead of time.

2) Now, here’s the part of the recipe that’s so easy you’ll fall out of your chair. Put ALL THE THINGS into the crock pot. Crumble the bacon up or leave it whole, however as you see fit. Stir it all up. It will look weird… like this:

3) Set it and forget it! Cook in the crock pot for 8 hours on LOW.

Any other time I’ve made a full 6-quart crock pot full of food for one person, I’ve frozen a bunch of leftovers. This time, there were no leftovers.